Ville de Gatineau
Snow clearing operations and response times
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Snow clearing operations and response times
Snow clearing operations and response times

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Snow clearing operations begin as soon as the snow starts falling, and de-icing, involving the use of melters and abrasives, is initiated as soon as the road becomes slippery.

Factors that can influence the efficiency and duration of operations

Intervention timeframes

Snow clearing and de-icing operations on the main arteries and collectors start as soon as precipitation begins. For side streets, snow clearing starts as soon as 5 cm has accumulated on the ground and in accordance with operational priorities.

Snow clearing routes are planned to ensure your safety and operational efficiency, and to reduce intervention times.

Given that several factors can affect the process, duration and efficiency of winter interventions, three different levels of service have been prescribed under the Politique de viabilité hivernale according to the type of situation.

Standard situation An event that does not present any operational challenges

  • Black ice formation
  • Snowfall under 15 cm
  • Mixed precipitation: snowfall under 10 cm accompanied by rain
Difficult situation An event that could present operational challenges

  • Snowfall between 15 and 25 cm
  • Freezing rain between 0 and 10 mm
  • Mixed precipitation: snowfall between 10 and 20 cm accompanied by rain
Critical situation An event that will certainly present operational challenges

  • Snowfall over 25 cm
  • Freezing rain over 10 mm
  • Mixed precipitation: snowfall over 20 cm accompanied by rain

Service levels for clearing streets, sidewalks and multi-purpose pathways

Priority Timeframe (once precipitation ends)1
Standard situation Difficult situation Critical situation
Roads 12 h 16 h 24 h2
Sidewalks 16 h 20 h 24 h2
Pathways / bike paths 16 h 20 h 24 h2

1 In the event of new precipitation while operations are underway, the timeframe is reset and snow clearing operations start again on the main arteries, collectors, sidewalks and priority pathways.

2 It may be difficult to achieve service levels on certain side streets and sidewalks and on multi-purpose pathways under certain extreme conditions.

Order of priority of operations

Snow clearing operations

Snow clearing statistics for Gatineau

About Gatineau

Recognized for its quality of life, Gatineau is a city of 298,000 inhabitants. It is located on the north shore of the Ottawa River, and extends east and west of the Gatineau River.

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